Blowing the whistle on workplace corruption: the role of ethical leadership

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a structural model of the role of ethical leadership on intent to whistle blow workplace corruption using the theory of planned behaviors. Design/methodology/approach The study used a mixed method, sequential design. Interviews were conducted in the first phase to identify corrupt practices and validate the salience of the variables in the study. The second phase administered surveys to test the hypotheses of the study. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was done to analyze structural relationships among variables. Findings SEM results showed an adequately fit model, indicating ethical leadership predicting organizational norms and controls. It also found that ethical leadership has indirect effect toward employees’ attitude toward corruption through organizational norms and control. Furthermore, ethical leadership also has indirect effect on intent to whistle blow through organizational controls. Research limitations/implications This study was conducted in the Philippines, a high-power distance culture. In such a culture, the influence of leadership is crucial, as it dictates standard behaviors of members and the organization as a whole. Future research may wish to explore whether the findings would also apply in low-power distance cultures. Practical implications The finding suggests that ethical leadership is crucial in shaping organizational norms and controls, which in turn, influences employees’ attitude toward corruption and their intention to whistle blow. Originality/value The study contributes to corruption literature by providing empirical evidence of the structure model how the role of ethical leadership shapes organizational norms and controls that, in turn, influences employee attitude toward corruption and intent to whistle blow.

Snitches Get Stitches and End Up in Ditches: A Systematic Review of the Factors Associated With Whistleblowing Intentions

“…The higher-order leadership theme contained five lowerorder themes, which included ethical management, managerial reactions, communication, leadership style, and dissimilarity between manager and employee. Eleven studies reported a positive relationship between ethical management and whistleblowing intentions (Chiasson et al, 1995;Near et al, 2004;Bhal and Dadhich, 2011;Kaptein, 2011;Alleyne, 2016;Wen and Chen, 2016;Zhang et al, 2016;Cheng et al, 2019;Ugaddan and Park, 2019;Hechanova and Manaois, 2020). If an individual thought that a manager may react negatively to whistleblowing or had reacted negatively in the past, people were less intent on blowing the whistle (Perry et al, 1997;Alleyne et al, 2013;Zhang et al, 2013;Scheetz and Fogarty, 2019).…”

Assessment of Both Personal and Professional Aspects to Measure Job Satisfaction Levels among Garment Workers: Empirical Evidence from a Developing Country

“…Arslan [ 80 ] combines three types of exploitation—financial, physical, and psychological—that lead to labor unhappiness in Pakistan’s garment industry. According to Hechanova and Manaois [ 81 ], employee attitudes in the Philippines as well as organizational norms and controls are all influenced by ethical leadership that is subject to job satisfaction. Employee satisfaction with supervision is positively correlated in Malaysia with reward, referent, and expert powers [ 82 ].…”

Antecedents of Whistleblowing Intentions: Evidance in Local Government Agencies

“…The existence of a fraud reporting system, or often referred to as a whistleblowing system, encourages employees and external parties to take an active role in providing information on fraud (Hechanova, M, & Manaois, 2020;Park & Lewis, 2019;Su, 2020). This whistleblowing system can serve as a warning to reveal fraud (Archambeault & Webber, 2015;Chaudhary, Gupta, & Phoolka, 2019;Mbago, Ntayi, & Mutebi, 2018).…”